If you’re interested in two days of elite high school basketball in late November in Lexington, boy do I have the event for you. The Joe B. Hall and Denny Crum Bluegrass Showcase will feature 14 of some of the nation’s best high school squads in an 11-game event at Dunbar High School. It will be held Friday, November 28, 2014 at 12:00 PM and Saturday, November 29, 2014 at 1:00 PM. Thon & Matur Maker, Josh Jackson, Terrance Ferguson, Jamal Murray, Caleb Swanigan, Isaac Humphries and Mario Kegler will be in action.

Friday, Nov. 28
12:00 p.m.: Carlisle School (Va.) vs. La Lumiere (Ind.)
1:30 p.m.: Arlington Country Day (Fla.) vs. Quality Education (N.C.)
3:00 p.m.: Huntington Prep (W.Va.) vs. Life Center Academy (N.J.)
4:30 p.m.: Homestead (Ind.) vs. Curie (Ill.)
6:00 p.m.: Prolific Prep (Calif.) vs. Sunrise Christian (Kan.)
7:30 p.m.: Prime Prep (Texas) vs. Orangeville Prep (Canada)

Saturday, Nov. 29
1:00 p.m.: Sunrise Christian (Kan.) vs. Quality Education (N.C.)
2:30 p.m.: Arlington Country Day (Fla.) vs. Life Center Academy (N.J.)
4:00 p.m.: Huntington Prep (W.Va.) vs. Faith Baptist Christian (Ga.)
5:30 p.m.: Homestead (Ind.) vs. White Station (Tenn.)
7 p.m.: Prolific Prep (Calif.) vs. Orangeville Prep (Canada)
8:30 p.m.: Prime Prep (Texas) vs. Carlisle School (Va.)

If you’re interested in two days of elite high school basketball in late November in Lexington, boy do I have the event for you. The Joe B. Hall and Denny Crum Bluegrass Showcase will feature 14 of some of the nation’s best high school squads in an 11-game event at Dunbar High School. It will be held Friday, November 28,2014 at 12:00 PM-Saturday, November 29,2014 at 10:00 PM. Thon Maker, Josh Jackson and Caleb Swanigan will be in action.

 

 

 

• Noon: Carlisle School (Va.) vs. La Lumiere (Ind.); 1:30 p.m.: Arlington Country Day (Fla.) vs. Quality Education (N.C.); 3 p.m.: Huntington Prep (W.Va.) vs. Life Center Academy (N.J.)
  4:30 p.m.: Homestead (Ind.) vs. Curie (Ill.); 6 p.m.: Prolific Prep (Calif.) vs. Sunrise Christian (Kan.); 7:30 p.m.: Prime Prep (Texas) vs. Orangeville Prep (Canada)
  Saturday, Nov. 29
  1 p.m.: Sunrise Christian (Kan.) vs. Quality Education (N.C.); 2:30 p.m.: Arlington Country Day (Fla.) vs. Life Center Academy (N.J.);4 p.m.: Huntington Prep (W.Va.) vs. Faith Baptist Christian (Ga.)
  5:30 p.m.: Homestead (Ind.) vs. White Station (Tenn.); 7 p.m.: Prolific Prep (Calif.) vs. Orangeville Prep (Canada); 8:30 p.m.: Prime Prep (Texas) vs. Carlisle School (Va.)
   
   
   
  
  Read more here: Next Cats: Local event will feature nation's top 2 juniors | High school basketball | Kentucky.com
  

 

 

I imagine this invite was make before Thon Maker left Carlisle School. I don't see them getting this offer if the tourney knew he would be in Canada.

No Ky schools.

Kentucky schools cannot begin regular season play until the Monday after Thanksgiving.

I understand that. Why is this being put on? This a fundraiser for Dunbar? Looks like a big aau tournament. This time of the year im ready for KY high school basketball.

Anyone planning on going to this. I plan on going.

Strange event

Anyone else think this is disrespectful to KY High School Basketball?

I might be going just to watch some games on Friday.

Very confused by the lack of KY schools. Not even Dunbar is playing. Only thing I can think of is that these schools are already playing regular season games.

The way I understand it, this is an event being organized and promoted by private individuals which make up the first part of a series of 3 events held within Kentucky. The individuals putting this on are not a part of KY HS basketball. They have put up funds for all the travel and lodging of all the teams involved. I think it was offered to Dunbar to host this event as a fundraiser from concessions and a portion of the gate (I'm not really sure on the gate, I wasn't listening very closely). The reason that teams from Ky aren't competing is that it is against KHSAA rules to play teams that do not have standing with their state high school athletics association, which some of these teams do not and the pairings were random I believe. I think that if this event is held next year, that there will be effort to get KHSAA approval for Kentucky teams to participate; but it is too late for this year. From what I saw in the news, the other to events in this series are the Marshall County Hoop Fest and McCracken County Festival of Hoops, but I don't know anything about the teams in those tournaments.

Here's a rundown of 10 players to keep an eye on during the showcase:

Caleb Swanigan (Homestead): The 6-foot-8 post player is one of nine prospects in the class of 2015 with a scholarship offer from Kentucky. Swanigan emerged as a major UK target over the summer and visited Lexington for John Calipari's NBA "combine" last month. Duke, Michigan State and Arizona are among the many other major programs involved in his recruitment. Scout.com and ESPN rank Swanigan as the No. 8 overall prospect in the senior class.

Thomas Bryant (Huntington Prep): The 6-10 post player from Rochester, N.Y., took an unofficial visit to UK for last week's game against Boston University. Bryant had seemingly narrowed his list to Syracuse, Missouri and Indiana, but his interest in Kentucky has increased in recent weeks and UK's coaches stayed in contact with him throughout the summer. ESPN ranks Bryant as the No. 16 overall player in the senior class.

Thon Maker (Orangeville Prep): The 7-footer from Sudan played the past two seasons at a high school in Virginia and is now part of Canada-based Orangeville Prep. Maker has become a YouTube sensation with his unique game, and some recruiting analysts consider him the No. 1 overall prospect in the junior class. Pretty much every major program in he country has expressed interest in Maker, and he already has a scholarship offer from Kentucky. It's possible that he could reclassify to 2015.

Josh Jackson (Prolific Prep): The 6-8 shooting guard moved to California over the summer after starting his high school career in Detroit. Jackson is a do-everything player who excels on the defensive end and is considered one of the top three prospects in the class of 2016. UK assistant coach Kenny Payne visited Jackson's high school earlier this fall.

Miles Bridges (Huntington Prep): The 6-6 small forward from Flint, Mich., is one of the most exciting players in the class of 2016. Bridges is entering his second season at Huntington Prep, and his game is starting to catch up with his elite athleticism. UK has been evaluating him for more than a year, and he accompanied Bryant on the unofficial visit to Lexington last week. ESPN ranks Bridges as the No. 7 player in the junior class.

Traci Carter (Life Center): The 6-foot point guard from Philadelphia has emerged as one of the top available players in the class of 2015. Louisville Coach Rick Pitino visited Carter's high school last week, and he is quickly becoming the Cards' top immediate recruiting target. Scout.com ranks Carter as the No. 92 overall player in the senior class. His high school coach is former Louisville star Pervis Ellison.

Terrance Ferguson (Prime Prep): The 6-6 wing player from Dallas is widely considered one of the top 10 juniors in the country. Ferguson is a high-flyer with great shooting touch and tremendous upside. Louisville, Kansas and Florida are among the many schools that have already extended scholarship offers.

Jamal Murray (Orangeville Prep): The 6-5 point guard from Toronto has achieved five-star status in the class of 2016, and Rivals.com ranks him as the No. 19 junior prospect. He has reported scholarship offers from Ohio State, Michigan State and several others. Teaming up with Thon Maker means Kentucky's coaches will also see plenty of him over the next few months.

Isaac Humphries (La Lumiere): The 6-10 center from Australia is entering his first season at La Lumiere and was ranked as one of the top 30 players in the junior class before playing a single game in the United States. Duke, Kansas and Arizona have already expressed interest in his recruitment. Many more top schools will likely do the same this season.

Tulio Da Silva (Arlington Country Day): The 6-8 small forward from Brazil is an under-the-radar prospect who could end up being one of the best players in the class of 2015. Da Silva signed early with South Florida, a recruiting coup for first-year head coach Orlando Antigua. He's expected to rise in the rankings as he gets more national exposure this season with Arlington Country Day.

 

 

Read more here: Several of nation's top basketball prospects in showcase at Dunbar this weekend | High school basketball | Kentucky.com

If you’re interested in two days of elite high school basketball in late November in Lexington, boy do I have the event for you. The Joe B. Hall and Denny Crum Bluegrass Showcase will feature 14 of some of the nation’s best high school squads in an 11-game event at Dunbar High School. It will be held Friday, November 28,2014 at 12:00 PM-Saturday, November 29,2014 at 10:00 PM. Thon Maker, Josh Jackson and Caleb Swanigan will be in action.

 

 

 

• Noon: Carlisle School (Va.) vs. La Lumiere (Ind.); 1:30 p.m.: Arlington Country Day (Fla.) vs. Quality Education (N.C.); 3 p.m.: Huntington Prep (W.Va.) vs. Life Center Academy (N.J.)
  4:30 p.m.: Homestead (Ind.) vs. Curie (Ill.); 6 p.m.: Prolific Prep (Calif.) vs. Sunrise Christian (Kan.); 7:30 p.m.: Prime Prep (Texas) vs. Orangeville Prep (Canada)
  Saturday, Nov. 29
  1 p.m.: Sunrise Christian (Kan.) vs. Quality Education (N.C.); 2:30 p.m.: Arlington Country Day (Fla.) vs. Life Center Academy (N.J.);4 p.m.: Huntington Prep (W.Va.) vs. Faith Baptist Christian (Ga.)
  5:30 p.m.: Homestead (Ind.) vs. White Station (Tenn.); 7 p.m.: Prolific Prep (Calif.) vs. Orangeville Prep (Canada); 8:30 p.m.: Prime Prep (Texas) vs. Carlisle School (Va.)
   
   
   
  
  Read more here: Next Cats: Local event will feature nation's top 2 juniors | High school basketball | Kentucky.com
  

 

Looks like the schedule has changed. Here is the new one:

 

 

• SCHEDULE
  All games at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School
  Friday
  1 p.m. — Carlisle School (Va.) vs. La Lumiere (Ind.)
  2:30 p.m. — Arlington Country Day (Fla.) vs. Quality Education (N.C.)
  4 p.m. — Homestead (Ind.) vs. Curie (Ill.)
  5:30 p.m. — Prime Prep (Texas) vs. Orangeville Prep (Canada)
  7 p.m. — Prolific Prep (Calif.) vs. Sunrise Christian (Kan.)
  8:30 p.m. — Huntington Prep (W.Va.) vs. Life Center Academy (N.J.)
  Saturday
  1 p.m. — Sunrise Christian (Kan.) vs. Carlisle School (Va.)
  2:30 p.m. — Arlington Country Day (Fla.) vs. Life Center Academy (N.J.)
  4 p.m. — Huntington Prep (W.Va.) vs. Faith Baptist Christian (Ga.)
  5:30 p.m. — Homestead (Ind.) vs. White Station (Tenn.)
  7 p.m. — Prolific Prep (Calif.) vs. Prime Prep (Texas)
  8:30 p.m. — Orangeville Prep (Canada) vs. Quality Education (N.C.)
  
  Read more here: Several of nation's top basketball prospects in showcase at Dunbar this weekend | High school basketball | Kentucky.com
  

I would love to go, but I do not want to pay $55 for a 2-day pass to get in.

 

Joe B. Hall and Denny Crum Bluegrass Showcase at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School | tadoo

Ummm...if it costs that much then you wont be seeing me there. I will go and see what a 1 day ticket is, I really can't imagine many people will go if it really is more than 15 bucks to get in the door for the day.